Overview

Customizing or Hiding the Cart Page Disclaimer Text - Image 1

When a customer's cart contains a pre-order item (a deferred, subscription, or recurring purchase), Shopify automatically displays a disclaimer message on the cart page. By default it reads:

This text is controlled by Shopify's theme content (not by K1 Pre-Order), so it can be edited directly in your store's admin. You can replace it with your own wording or hide it entirely.

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Good to know: This disclaimer is a native Shopify Buyer consent cart string. Editing it does not affect K1 Pre-Order functionality — it only changes what the shopper sees on the cart page.

Why This Disclaimer Exists

Shopify adds this message to help merchants stay compliant with consumer-protection and payment regulations that apply to deferred, subscription, and recurring purchases — including pre-orders with deposits or delayed fulfillment. Depending on where you sell, these may include:

  • US: the Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act (ROSCA) and FTC guidance on negative-option and deferred billing, plus state-level auto-renewal laws (for example California's ARL).
  • EU / UK: the Consumer Rights Directive and the UK Consumer Contracts Regulations, which require clear pre-contractual information about price, payment timing, cancellation rights, and the duration of the contract.
  • Card network and payment-provider rules: Visa, Mastercard, and Shopify Payments require merchants to obtain clear buyer consent before charging a stored payment method for a deferred or recurring transaction.

The disclaimer's role is to document that the shopper has been informed about what they are paying for, when they will be charged, and how they can cancel — and that they agreed to it at checkout. This is what turns the cart action into valid, auditable consent.

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Compliance note: We strongly recommend keeping a disclaimer visible whenever your store accepts pre-orders, deposits, or delayed charges. You can reword it to match your brand, but fully hiding it may put the store at risk of chargebacks, payment-provider violations, or non-compliance with local consumer-protection laws. If you are unsure, consult your legal advisor before removing it.

Step 1. Open Theme Content

  1. In your Shopify admin, go to Online Store → Themes.
  2. In the left sidebar open the ⋯ menu on your live theme and choose Edit default theme content).
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Step 2. Find the Disclaimer String

  1. In the search field at the top of the Theme content page, type:

    One or more of

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Step 3. Edit or Hide the Text

You have two options depending on what you want to achieve:

Option A — Replace the text

  1. Click inside the Buyer consent cart field.
  2. Enter your custom wording. You can keep the existing Liquid variables (for example cancellationPolicyLink ) so the cancellation policy link continues to work.
  3. Click Save in the top-right corner.

Option B — Hide the text completely

  1. Click inside the Buyer consent cart field.
  2. Enter a single space character. An empty value will make Shopify restore the default text, so a space is required.
  3. Click Save.
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Use with caution: Hiding the disclaimer entirely removes the buyer-consent statement from the cart page. This may conflict with ROSCA, EU/UK consumer-protection rules, and card-network requirements for deferred or recurring charges. If you choose this option, make sure equivalent consent wording is shown somewhere else in the purchase flow (for example on the product page or at checkout).

Step 4. Verify on the Storefront

  1. Open your storefront and add a pre-order product to the cart.
  2. Go to the cart page and confirm that the disclaimer now shows your custom text — or is no longer visible, if you chose to hide it.
  3. Clear your browser cache or use an incognito window if the old text still appears.
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Notes and Limitations

  • This string is managed by Shopify, not by K1 Pre-Order. If you switch themes or reset theme content, your custom text may need to be re-applied.
  • The disclaimer only appears when the cart contains an item flagged as a deferred, subscription, or recurring purchase (which includes K1 pre-orders with deposits or delayed fulfillment).
  • Changes to theme content apply to the currently published theme. If you edit a draft or duplicated theme, publish it for the change to take effect on the live store.
  • If you keep the default cancellationPolicyLink variable, make sure a Cancellation policy is configured under Settings → Policies in Shopify so the link renders correctly.
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Tip: Use this field to match the disclaimer wording to your brand voice, translate it for specific markets (together with Translate & Adapt), or remove it entirely if your store already communicates pre-order terms elsewhere on the product or cart page.